The barbiturates enjoyed almost unchallenged rivalry for the relief of anxiety and insomnia after the introduction of phenobarbital in 1912. Among the most widely used of the dozens of barbiturate-like drugs were Nembutal and Seconal, both synthesized in 1928. Marketed by Abbott Laboratories and Eli Lilly, respectively, these barbiturates have also been used for the treatment of seizures and insomnia and to calm patients before surgery.
With the appearance of Librium and other benzodiazepines in the 1960s and 1970s, the medical popularity of the barbiturates Nembutal (pentobarbital) and Seconal (secobarbital) declined. Notwithstanding the effectiveness of the barbiturates, the benzodiazepines possessed a number of distinct advantages: they were more focused in their effects, safer when taken in overdoses, effective over extended periods, and less subject to abuse. The popularity of the barbiturates was further marred because of their nonmedical use for recreation, suicides, and euthanasia.
With street names such as yellow jackets and red devils referring to the colors of their respective capsules, Nembutal and Seconal have been used recreationally to get “high.” In Jacqueline Susann’s novel (1966) and film Valley of the Dolls (1967), one of the “dolls” is Seconal, used by a number of characters as a sleep aid and by one for suicidal purposes.
These drugs have caused or contributed to the death of a number of high-visibility individuals, including movie star Marilyn Monroe (1962), blues and jazz singer Dinah Washington (1963), actor and entertainer Judy Garland (1969), guitarist Jimi Hendrix (1970), and playwright Tennessee Williams (1983).
DRUG FOR DEATH TOURISTS. Pentobarbital has long been used for animal euthanasia and is the preferred drug for unassisted or physician-assisted suicide—a practice legal in several states, most notably Oregon, and European countries such as the Netherlands. While the sale of this drug is carefully controlled in the United States, “death tourists” can readily purchase it in pet shops in Tijuana and other Mexican cities.
SEE ALSO Chloral Hydrate (1869), Barbital (1903), Phenobarbital (1912), Librium (1960), Valium (1963), Ambien (1992).
For more than three decades, the barbiturates Nembutal and Seconal were widely used for the treatment of insomnia. In the 1960s, these drugs assumed greater notoriety for their non-medical recreational use and for their contribution in high-visibility suicides.